Preserves and liqueurs: where can I buy jars and bottles?
Posted by Fiona Nevile in Kitchen equipment, Liqueurs | 30 comments
You can buy beautiful new bottle online
“We’ve just made some wonderfully bramble jelly!”
“How lovely, Darling.”
“We thought that you might like some.”
“Of course I would. Do you need some jars?”
She knows her daughter well.
Now we save all jars. Even the jars that seemingly have no future. It’s best to wash them all immediately so that when you are in the mood for running up something delicious they just need a rinse, a sterilising session in the oven and then you are ready to go.
I also swap preserves for jars, bottles and any sort of glass container. Loads of my clients are older people who stockpile these treasures. They’d be happy just to give them to me but a barter is always best. This way everyone ends up with something that they want.
I also am on the lookout in the shops. There is a great French lemonade that is on sale at Tesco and Waitrose. The lemonade costs £1.99 and the empty bottle costs £2.99 at Lakeland (free lemonade and a pound to spend on something else). Waitrose sells loads of indulgent puds in small glass jars. My mum is very keen on these puds and saves all the jars for us. The low straight sided jars seemed pretty useless until I made membrillo last night.
We made a big investment in Le Parfait jars a few years ago. You can reasonably priced Le Parfait jars at Lakeland. There are cheaper ‘Le Parfait style’ jars around but we have found Le Parfait are stronger and a better investment if you are going to reuse them again and again. Of course they are dirt cheap in France. Worth stocking up on if you find yourself in France with a car or have a friend going over there.
We reuse good lids. Generally they reseal well (no matter what the books say). If the lids are shot, we use shop-bought wax disks and cellophane lids for jam but don’t use these for churney as the vinegar dissolves through a permaeable lid and you are left with a dried up husk within months.
If we are making preserves as presents we buy the jars and screw top lids (in bulk) from a serious beekeeper (100+ hives). Look on the internet – there could be a beekeeper near you that buys jars in bulk and is willing to sell them to you. There will be a modest mark up but little or no carriage.
Thornes (one of the main UK beekeeping suppliers) will sell you jars but your order is limited and you have to pay a hefty carriage. Most beekeepers buy their jars from Freeman and Harding. F&H also supply bottles for aromatherapy, medicines and grog. If you don’t need many jars Lakeland sells them in cases of 12.
I get quite a few emails asking me where to find glass jars/bottles/containers. Everyone wants to source a good supplier of small bottles.
“I want to give my sloe gin as a present and am looking for small bottles.”
I found the bottles in the photo at The Leaping Hare shop in Suffolk last Christmas. £5.95 for 4 exquisite bottles. I still have them as D said that they were too pretty to give away and our grog is too special to put in any bottle. Ideally it is quaffed from demi john to glass to mouth. Bottles? They don’t get a look in.
If you are still resolute and genuinely need glass bottles, Freeman and Harding will sell small crates of simple bottles at reasonable prices. The carriage is steepish but when you work out the price of each bottle (including carriage) they are a lot cheaper than buying a couple of bottles from the pound shop. A few people could get together locally and share the cost. Lakeland has some very pretty bottles here.
I have also ventured onto eBay There are loads of pretty bottles gleaming out at a pound a pop for 4 bottles (including postage). A grog filled bottle would be perfect for stocking presents or the crowning glory of a special Christmas hamper. Beautifully labelled of course.
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I use a company called pattesons glass and do my own bottling, i think there website is http://www.jarsandbottles.co.uk , i make grape seed oil but they do glass jars and glass bottles for different purposes.
Hi Chris
Thanks for this tip!
I got some small oil/vinegar bottles from jamjarshop.com at a reasonable price and they made a great gift. They have a nice range of jars too and spare lids for all the jars I’ve got in the garage with missing lids!
Ikea (bit of a nightmare to go to I admit) sells le parfait type jars very reasonably – the 0.5l ones are 97p each – I used these for my chutney before Christmas to give as gifts and they worked really well. They also do a 1l and 2l size too.
They also do a really pretty ribbed jar called “sagolik” (more pricey at £1.95) which I tried but wouldn’t use again as its rubber seal wasn’t very efficient.
I do so enjoy this blog and, as the winter weather means there isn’t much that can be done in the garden, I seek to discover other things to do with my time. My current obession if liqueurs – limoncello and ginger liqueur on the go at the mo – vanilla rum and lime Daiquiri next on the list. The cheapest place I have found for new clip-top botles is www.justpreserving.co.uk. A small range of designs, but good range of sizes and the delivery isn’t horrendous. Not as cheap as recycling (I do that too) – but perhaps others could let me know if they find anywhere cheaper. There are no home brew shops within a 20 mile radius, so online ordering is the way to go!
Hi Minamoo,
Thanks for dropping by. Perhaps you were the cause of the snarl up on the Bath road this afternoon! Seriously, it’s great to hear about these offers. Le Parfait jars are pricey around here as they must be all over the UK. If I was in Bath I would be heading for Lakeland early tomorrow morning and thanking you again and again!
We have been pigging out on membrillo for lunch, the past few days.
I am over the moon right now. Went into the Lakeland shop in Bath and it turns out that they have discontinued their 500g Le Parfait jars so they’ve all been discounted to 99p each! I love their bargain corner! I also managed to get 6 1L ones for £6.99 and a jelly bag and stand for £3.79! I can’t wait to get back to Leeds so I can make your belgian pears and some quince jelly and membrillo! 😀
Hi Mark,
Thanks very much for giving the name of a good supplier. I’ve checked them out on the internet just now – what a great company!
Hello to all Preserve heads… I highly recommend a company based in Bermondsey S.E London just off the old kent rd ,near tower bridge they are on-line www. frenchflint.com Though they are part of a big group they still offer a small but personal and slightly eccentric service thanks to Mary( i,m sure that’s her name) at the sales desk. Check them out or make the pilgrimage too see them, but beware you will buy so much more than you expected as they have so many great items…..enjoy.!
Hi Minamoo,
Thanks so much for these tips! The Asda curry sauce at 6p a jar is cheaper than buying new jars. Milton is a good idea although a client taught me that bicarbonate of soda gets rid of smells like magic. Just sprinkle a little in a pot or a jar and rub in with a damp cloth and rinse. We use a cleaning solution for bottles and demi johns etc called WWP cleaner and steriliser. A 400g tub makes up to120 gallons. I buy most of this sort of thing on line (the art of brewing) as we live out in the sticks.
We don’t have a Wilkinson’s around here, unfortunately.
My winemaking book tips to link up with a local restaurant for bottles.
An excellent source if jars is actually Asda! Their Asda Smart Price Curry Sauce is currently reduced to just 6p a jar! They are excellent one pound size jars and have poppy tops. All they need is soaking in some hot, strong Miltons solution to get rid of the curry smell and they’re ready to use and best of all………..dirt cheap! As far as bottles go, I have been raiding my neighbours’ recycling bins for empty wine botttles that I then give the Miltons treatment and I bought a cheap hand-corker and some corks from Wilkinson’s for only about £4 for the corker and £1 for the corks. They do also sell packs of six empty wine bottles for about £3 so it’s always a good idea to pop into one if you have a large one near you. 🙂